All-purpose soaps like the organic hand and body wash we make at Sagestone Botanicals can be used for a lot more than just cleaning skin. Here are seven ways you can use our soap in everyday life:

1. As a gentle, all-purpose cleaner

All-purpose soaps have disinfecting power, whether you are using them on your skin or on your kitchen counters. Just mix a quart cup of all-purpose soap with a quart of warm water, stir well and then spray onto your countertops.

2. Thoroughly washing produce

There is so much on the skin of our produce these days, from dirt to wax to pesticides. All-purpose soap can help get your food nice and clean. Just mix a quarter teaspoon into a bowl of water, then stir. Once your mix is ready, use the bowl to pre-wash your fruits and veggies before rinsing them thoroughly with cold water.

3. Moisturizing hand wash

Our organic soap has oil as its base, so washing your hands with it can help keep your skin moisturized - even when you don’t have time to top off your routine with lotion.

4. Cleaning dishes

Try all-purpose soap for handwashing dishes. Because our products are biodegradable, they are ideal for both disinfecting and cleaning your dishes - and they won’t pollute our waterways.

5. Plant bug spray

It can be hard to find a gentle, natural bug spray for your plants. All-purpose soap is a quick and easy solution. Just mix one tablespoon of soap into a quart of water and spray the solution onto your plants to help get them bug-free.

6. Shampoo

Shampoo is just soap for your hair. Our all-purpose soap is safe for your scalp and your hair. Plus, having an all-in-one soap/shampoo combo makes holiday packing that much easier!

7. Face wash

You can ditch the expensive face wash in favor of our gentle, organic, all-purpose soap. It is sulfate and paraben free, and has its base in natural oils, so the soap is very gentle on your skin.

We know that many of you are working hard to shop responsibly, but it can be hard. Packaging carries buzzwords like “natural” - but sometimes these words mean very little. That’s why we wanted to help by giving a quick “how to” on buying your soaps and lotions responsibly.

Read the Label

Remember that all of your soaps and lotions will soak into your skin - and many products will go down your drains and into our waterways and streams. Read the label and buy items with ingredients you can understand. Some ingredients to avoid include:

Fragrance

Parabens

Propylene Glycol

Triclosan

Sulfates

Synthetics

Ureas

Look for biodegradable products

You would think that skincare products would naturally be biodegradable, but unfortunately this is not always the case. When shopping for your soaps, lotions, and creams, be sure to find products that are biodegradable. Not only will these generally be healthier for you, when they wash into our waterways they will break down into nontoxic components.

When buying artisanal soaps and lotions, try buying direct from the manufacturer. This can help the manufacturer see a higher percentage of their profits - and it provides you with a direct line to the people making the product so that all of your questions can be answered at the source. Finally, buying direct is often cheaper - so it can help you save money, too!

Look for labels that mean something

Labels like “organic” or “fair trade” have a legal meaning. However, a label like “natural” may mean very little. If you aren’t sure what the label means, contact the manufacturer directly and get it clarified. Many artisanal or handmade products are produced by people who are eager to talk about their best practices.

Shopping for biodegradable, natural skin care products requires a little more thought than just grabbing something from your local big box store. However, the results make the extra care worth the trouble!